There may be no winter-time dessert more adored in all of France than the one known as "Mont Blanc aux Marrons". What most Frenchmen do not realize, however, is that the dessert, named after Mont Blanc, the highest of all the Alps, and the mountain that forms a critical point along the French-Italian border, was probably first made by an Italian.

The first mention of the dessert, based on a sweetened puree of chestnuts piled high with whipped cream, is found in Giovanni Platina's "The Honest Cook" which was printed in Florence in 1475. By the beginning of the 16th century the dish was popular through- out all of Italy and was a special favorite in the households of Cesare Borgia and his sister Lucrezia. The first actual recipe, nearly identical to the one used today, appears in Bartolomeo Scappi's "Cooking Secrets of Pope Pius V" which was published in 1570.

A dessert this popular could not help but make its way across the French border and in 1620 a baker in Chamonix claimed the invention as his own. Once it had been established as a French recipe, the burghers of Paris, Lyon and Grenoble adopted it as their own. The dessert that had been born more than one hundred and fifty years earlier in Florence had been converted once and for all into a famous French dessert.

Regardless of the national origins of the dish, the best known version is probably the one found at Angelina, a charming patisserie- tea room located on the 226 Rue de Rivoli in Paris. Several years ago, I asked Mademoiselle Cornul, the assistant-manageress of Angeline's for the recipe, she did not hestitate to reply: "We confess, Monsieur. Our recipe is taken directly from `The New York Times Cookbook' of James Beard". So is the recipe that follows.

Mont Blanc Aux Marrons
Chestnut Mont-Blanc

1 ½ kilos chestnuts
1 cup sugar
3 cups milk
1 vanilla bean, about 5 cm long
2 Tablespoons butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sweet cream, well chilled
vanilla and sugar to taste

To prepare the chestnuts, cut a cross in the top of each chestnut and set them in a saucepan of cold water. Bring to the boil, boil for 1 minute and remove from the flame. Drain the chestnuts, pour over cold water to cover and, before the chest- nuts become cool, peel off and discard the outer and inner skins.

In the top of a double boiler scald the milk together with ¼ cup of the sugar and the vanilla bean. Add the peeled chestnuts and cook over boiling water until the chestnuts are very tender (about 30 minutes). Drain the chestnuts and puree them in a food mill or with a sieve. (Do not discard the milk as it may be used later to make puddings or sweet rice desserts).

While the chestnuts are cooking, mix the remaining sugar with 6 Tablespoons of water and boil, stirring regularly, until a temperature of 110 degrees Celsius (230 degrees Celsius) is obtained. Add the sugar syrup, butter and salt to the chestnut puree and then force through a ricer or a wire sieve, letting the vermicelli-like puree fall into a 23 centimeter ring mold. Turn the mold over on a chilled serving plate and place in the refrigerator. Let chill thoroughly before serving.

Pour the sweet cream into a completely dry chilled bowl and beat it by hand or with an electric beater until the cream is stiff enough to form soft peaks when the beater is lifted out. If the cream is not to be used immediately it may be stored in the refrigerator for up to two hours. Just before serving, fold in the sugar and vanilla extract and then fill the center of the chestnut ring with the cream, shaping the cream into a dome.

(Serves 8 - 10).

© Daniel Rogov